Chelmsford drug dealer returned to life of crime to 'fund his grandmother's funeral'

“Class A drugs are very evil things they feed addictions, they wreck families, they destroy lives and they feed crime at all sorts of levels and that is why people who deal them are dealt with severely"

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He was told to attend an address where he met the defendant and another gentlemen.

The officer noted that Brown seemed to be the ‘main man.’

All three then went to another address where the defendant sold the officer £20 worth of crack cocaine he took from his underwear, in a stairwell.

Then on September 11, the officer again asked to buy drugs and was told to meet at a different location where he again sold him £20 worth of drugs.

Brown was subsequently arrested, charged and eventually jailed.

Mitigating lawyer Janice Brennan said: “On the face of it from what your honour has heard, you might think he is a young man going back to his old bad habits but it will not surprise you there is a little more to this young man and a particular reason why he sadly did go back to drug dealing that he intended not to return to.

“His parents split when he was three years old and he lived with his mother until she was sent to prison for benefit fraud when he was 13. He moved in with his grandparents but he struggled to cope with life.

“His first conviction was that at 13 and from then he engaged in a relentless life of crime."

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Miss Brennan claimed that after his time in prison, Brown attempted to re-build his life but was “drawn” into drug dealing again after a family death.

“In February 2017, his father died and he was unable to provide for a funeral for his father because he had no money. His grandmother died in June the same year and he was determined that his grandmother would have a funeral.

“She had debts, he has no employment and no way to pay for it. That is why he went back to drug dealing, to raise the money."

When questioned about 30 pairs of designer trainers found at his house, Miss Brennan added: “The money raised quite a lot more and he wanted to make a life for himself too as he was struggling to get that established.”

Sentencing Brown, Judge David Turner QC said: “Class A drugs are very evil things. They feed addictions, they wreck families, they destroy lives and they feed crime at all sorts of levels and that is why people who deal them are dealt with severely.